Chronicles on the road: Sofia (Day 2)

There’s a popular saying which perfectly describes our second day in Sofia: “In all your plans, leave room for spontaneity.” See what we’re talking about below.

Published in

Eastern Chronicles

6 min readNov 21, 2015

The most challenging thing about our road trips is sticking to a previously established schedule. We are organised most of the time, but sometimes we have no choice but to face the unpredictable. Luckily, the most interesting stories from our trips came out of these kind of situations.

Here’s a fresh example: today we planned to wake up early in the morning, eat something, and then go out and join a free city tour. Everything went smoothly, until we came across an antiques marketplace along the way. We spent almost an hour there without even noticing, which, obviously, led to us missing the city tour. But it was worth it! The experience was quite awesome: in addition to a perfect opportunity to blend a little bit with the locals, the things they were selling were both amazing and creepy. To me, the most mind-blowing of them were the Nazi artifacts, such as SS soldiers’ ID cards, war knives, badges, and military clothing.

On the other side of war memorabilia, I was very close to buying a 60-year-old watch made in the Soviet Union (CCCP). The only thing that stopped me from buying it was an annoying feeling that the watch wasn’t really genuine. Then we met a Romanian guy who told us, among other interesting and useful things, that we should avoid buying watches… Therefore, even though I’m still thinking about that hipsterish vintage watch, I’m proud of my intuition. Long story short, this kind of unpredictability followed us for the rest of the day, but I’ll probably tell you more in a following article. Until then, I just want to make this statement: Sofia rules! — Alexandra Palconi

It appears to me that I had a moment of farsightedness yesterday (and this is a moment of modesty, of course). Sofia is the craziest “stew of architecture” I’ve ever seen. And that’s that, case closed.

Today was mostly about socializing and walking; we met some really nice people and strolled for more that 8 miles. Despite the fact that we didn’t respect the morning’s plan, we managed to ramble for a total of almost 7 hours, sightseeing most of downtown and getting a feeling of homey safeness. We also found a lot of cool places to eat or have a chill time, so we were quickly enjoying our night. On another note, I’ve started to actually learn the city, understand its geometry, memorize the main streets and shortcuts, all of which somehow came naturally. I believe I would fit in pretty quickly if I were to move here.— Cristian Sitov

Sofia, you are a beautiful mess!

We got a little deeper into Sofia’s spirit last night and today. Therefore, although I stand by my puzzle-like description of the city, I must say it has really grown on me.

Last night, a Romanian resident of Sofia took us to some places we would’ve surely missed but for his guidance (thanks, Ciprian). One of them was a bar called “Hambara” — an artsy place usually frequented by Bohemian types. The place had no lighting except for abundant candles, which gave it a cozy feel. Unfortunately, there were no available seats, so we decided to head for a place called “Backyard.” We never made it there, however, because on the way we passed an Irish pub that seemed rather generic — so, we didn’t go inside. Downstairs, however, there was a wooden door that seemed like it led to a cellar but was actually a gate to an ‘exclusive’ place called “Lorka.”

The story we heard was that people are scanned before being allowed inside, so we had to find out if we would pass the test. We rang a doorbell and a small panel in the door opened; someone looked at us (no, there was no password required), shut the panel, and then unlocked the door. Inside, we discovered a cool little bar with a great atmosphere and a nice vibe.

I know, I know. Technically what I just ranted about isn’t really about “Day 2,” but it did help in shaping my whole perception of Sofia. As I spent more time there, the urban mess and the architectural (dis)connections became endearing, and I began to see them reflected even in the people that passed me by. Right now, Sofia seems to me much like a really clumsy person, one who smiles so innocently after breaking a glass that you can’t help but kindly hug them. So yes, Sofia, you truly are a charming, beautiful mess. — Alexandra Dragos